Method and plant for automatic washing and/or ironing of substantially flat objects, and plant for carrying out the method

ABSTRACT

Method and plant for processing in the form of washing and/or ironing of substantially flat items ( 4 ), such as textiles and the like, which individually can be fed continuously and successively into a processing plant. The processing plant contains fixed as well as movable, tubular parts ( 12, 13, 14, 15 ), where the process or the processes take place in a forwardly-progressing movement by means of a holding arrangement ( 6 ) with a holding device ( 7 ) for the securing and stretching-out of one or more items ( 4 ), the holding arrangement ( 6 ) securing the item ( 4 ) or the items ( 4 ) from the feeding-in part ( 1 ) in the process, through washing and/or ironing parts until the processes are concluded. A plant for the execution of the method was the fixed and the movable parts which form part of the processing part of the plant consisting of a number of tubular elements ( 12, 13, 14, 15 ) which are disposed in a substantially horizontal manner and transversely to the processing direction. The movable element or elements ( 13, 15 ), preferably placed between fixed elements, are displaceable in a more or less vertical direction. A plant for execution of the method has the individual item ( 4 ) provided with a provisionally fixed front edge ( 6 ) which extends wholly or partly along the front of the item ( 4 ) seen in the direction of transport.

The invention relates to a method for the processing in the form ofwashing and/or ironing of substantially flat objects such as textilesand the like, which by a feeding-in apparatus can be introducedautomatically and fed successively and continuously into a processingplant, said processing plant containing both fixed as well as movableparts.

The invention also relates to a plant for the execution of the methodaccording to the invention.

The known technique

Large washing and ironing plants are known for industrial laundering ofitems for hospitals or similar large institutions. The work of placingthe items in the washing and/or ironing plants, either at the start orat an intermediate change in the process, e.g. from washing process toironing process, is a particularly troublesome operation for thepersonnel who carry it out, the reason being that the items are heavy tohandle when they are still damp. The normal procedure in the handling ofthe items, which can be sheets, duvet covers, blankets and the like, isthat the individual items are taken up from a large movable container inwhich the items are often tangled to- gether with one another, and hungup in a so-called self-feeder. The self-feeder consists of a pair ofclamps which can be moved away from each other on a horizontal sliderod. When the corner parts of the items are clamped fast in the clampsarranged for this purpose, the clamps are forced away from each other sothat the items are stretched out when being fed in to the relevantplant.

This form of feeding-in is not ideal, especially because the personnelwho hang the items up in the self-feeder are burdened by having to benddown to collect the items, and thereafter hold them up with outstretchedarms in order to secure the items in the gripping arrangement in theself-feeder, which must hold the individual items stretched out so thatthese can be processed over the whole of their surface and without theitems getting wrinkled.

From EP 0 620 310 A1 and EP 0 751 251 A1 there are known automaticself-feeders which grip the items and feed them into the subsequentprocess in a processing sequence. These self-feeders grip the items andfeed them into an apparatus, after which the self-feeders or thegripping arrangements release the items which are then fed through theapparatus by other means. When the item comes out of the relevantapparatus after the conclusion of the processing, they are gripped byother arrangements which feed them further to the next processingstation or apparatus.

By these methods with many different gripping arrangements which gripand release the items many times during their passage through aprocessing sequence, there is great probability that the items arewrinkled during the handling, and at each single introduction into anapparatus they must be smoothed or straightened out before or inconnection with the feeding-in to the relevant apparatus.

By the method according to the invention, these inexpedient intermediatesmoothing-out operations are avoided, in that the items are in contactwith one and the same holding arrangement from start to finish of thehandling process.

The washing process takes place in a large vessel, where the items areexposed to a mechanical influence at the same time that the items arepresent in water to which a detergent has been added. Since this washingmethod is effected in portions, a great deal of energy is required todrive that part of the washing machine which exercises the mechanicalinfluence on the items, while at the same time a lot of water is used inthe process, the reason being that the vessel contains a great deal ofwater which must be changed regularly, or cleaned if this is possible.Thereafter, the items must be transferred to an ironing section, andthis transfer is carried out more or less manually, as mentionedearlier, by the items being hung up in a self-feeder.

The ironing section is built up of a frame in which a number ofmaterial-coated ironing rollers rotate. The rollers are arrangedtransversely to the direction in which the items are fed, and normallythere will be between 2 and 6 rollers in such an ironing section. Theitems are fed from the self-feeder to the first roller in the ironingsection, where so-called roller cords, which must ensure that theindividual items are fed in under the rollers so that they do not runaround with the rollers, extend in the rolling direction from first tolast roller. Each roller is provided with a coating of material which ispermeable to steam and which transfers heat to the item from a heatsource. As counterpart to the individual ironing rollers, there areso-called mulders, which are material-coated steam-heated ironingsurfaces, which partly surround the lower part of the individual ironingroller, and which during operation lie up against the items which are tobe ironed and press them against the ironing roller. In order to ensurethat the items do not wrinkle, it is necessary that the individualrollers have a precise, mutually differentiated speed of rotation, whichmeans that each roller in the sequence rotates slightly more quicklythan the preceding roller. Since with this technique it is difficult tocontrol the feeding of the individual items, it frequently occurs thatthe items are drawn through in a crooked manner or that folds arise inthe items.

In addition to the difficulty of creating the differentiated speed ofrotation for the rollers, it is also inexpedient that the rollers areheld in rotation during the whole of the time that the plant is inoperation, in that the amount of energy used for this is notinconsiderable. Moreover, the roller cords which lead the itemsunder/through the rollers must be changed every day, and the relativelycostly roller coating must be replaced a couple of times a year.

With the invention, there is provided a method for the washing and/ordrying/ironing of a large number of more or less flat items, and aholding arrangement for the transport of the items through such plantswhich solves the above-mentioned problems. The special aspect of themethod according to the invention is that the process or processes takeplace in a forwardly-progressing movement by means of a holdingarrangement with holding means for the securing and stretching-out ofthe items, said holding arrangement securing and stretching-out the itemor items from the feeding-in part of the process, and said holdingarrangement feeding the item or the items through the washing and/orironing part during the whole of the processing or until the processingis finished, where the holding arrangement is moved by means of atransport arrangement which, via carriers, feeds the holding arrangementthrough the processing plant, and that the items are brought intocontact with said fixed and movable parts in the form of transverseelements, at least one of these elements in a processing section beingdisplaceable in a substantially upwards and downwards movement.

With the invention there is also provided a plant for the execution ofthe method, where the processing part of the plant comprises both fixedas well as movable parts, which parts consist of a number of tubularelements which are disposed in a substantially horizontal manner andtransversely to the processing direction, where the movable element orelements, which are preferably placed between fixed elements, aredisplaceable in a substantially upwards and downwards direction, and aholding arrangement for the feeding of the stretched-out items throughthe process, said holding arrangement comprising a geometric lockingdevice which secures an item so that the holding arrangement constitutesa provisionally fixed front edge which wholly or partly extends alongthe front of the item seen in the direction in which the items aretransported.

The washing part can in turn be divided up into smaller sections, eachwith its washing vessel, so that it is possible to change the water in asingle or several vessels as required, possibly so that the water fromthe most dirtied vessels is discarded or filtered. The filtered watercan be used in a vessel where the water is more dirty, inasmuch as it isensured that the rinsing water at the outlet of the washing process iscleaner than the water in the remaining vessels, and that thecleanliness is decreasing in the direction towards the inlet to thewashing part. The filtration can be effected either continuously or inportions. With a more simple embodiment, it can be sufficient to changethe water in the individual vessels as required.

A washing section contains a number of fixed, substantially horizontalpipes, and a number of movable, substantially horizontal pipes. Thefixed pipes are wholly or partly covered by water, and the movable pipeor pipes can be moved in an upwards and downwards direction in such amanner that a holding arrangement is allowed passage by the movingupwards of precisely that movable pipe which exists immediately in frontof the momentary position of the holding arrangement, and as soon as theholding arrangement has passed under the lowest placed point of thepipe, the pipe is lowered to its lowermost position, whereby amechanical influence is achieved due to the friction between pipe anditem on both the upper and the lower side of the item. The individualpipes can have identical, different or individual configurations, forexample circular or ellipsoidal configurations. In order to achieveincreased washing effect, the pipes can have an angular cross-section ofsome form or another, and/or the number of pipes in the relevant sectioncan be increased, or the number of sections can be further increased.

An ironing section contains a number of substantially horizontalstationary pipes, and a number of substantially horizontal movablepipes. All of the pipes which are placed in this section are heated bymeans of a heating medium, which can be an electrical heating element,or heated by means of a chemical reaction or combustion or, in apreferred embodiment, by means of a through-flowing heating medium,preferably steam. The movable tube or tubes can be moved in an upwardsand downwards direction in such a manner that a holding arrangement isallowed passage by the moving upwards of precisely that movable pipewhich exists immediately in front of the momentary position of theholding arrangement, and as soon as the holding arrangement has passedunder the lowest placed point of the pipe, the pipe is lowered to itslowermost position, whereby due to the friction between the heated pipeand the item a smoothing-out and drying ironing effect is achieved onboth the top side and the under side of the item. The individual pipescan have identical, different or individual configurations, saidconfigurations preferably being circular or ellipsoidal.

The actual feeding-in or insertion of the items takes place by placing adry item, preferably a piece of textile which on one or more edges isprovided with a seam or other form of beaded edge, in a holdingarrangement which is arranged to accommodate the beaded edge and securethis during the whole of the handling process. Upon conclusion of theprocessing of the individual item, the item is released, after which itis folded or in another manner prepared for storage for later use. Theholding arrangement can with advantage be provided with channels for thethrough-flow of water and/or steam, in such a manner that the beadededge can be influenced by washing and/or drying means.

In the construction of the plant according to the invention, a cheaperand less space-demanding plant is achieved than the traditional plantswhich are currently known. An additional advantage of a plant and methodof this kind is that inexpedient manual handling of relatively heavyitems is avoided, in that an item does not have to be touched by handafter having been fed in to the plant according to the presentinvention. Moreover, apparatuses for the stretching-out of items betweenthe individual processing sections in existing plants are eliminated.

THE DRAWING

The invention and particularly advantageous embodiments are explained indetail in the following with reference to the figures in the drawing,where

FIG. 1 shows a perspective illustration of a feeding-in part for awashing and/or ironing plant according to the invention,

FIG. 1 a shows in principle the insertion of an item into a holdingarrangement,

FIG. 2 shows a preferred embodiment of a holding arrangement forsecuring and transport of substantially flat items,

FIG. 3 shows schematically the path followed by an item through awashing section,

FIG. 4 shows the construction of an ironing section in principle,

FIG. 5 shows a processing plant with several processing sections in apreferred embodiment,

FIG. 6 shows a second embodiment of a holding arrangement for securingand transport of substantially flat items,

FIG. 7 shows a further embodiment of a holding arrangement for securingand transport of substantially flat items, and

FIG. 8 shows yet a further embodiment of a holding arrangement forsecuring and transport of substantially flat items.

THE EXAMPLE EMBODIMENT

In FIG. 1 is seen a feeding-in part for a washing and/or ironing plantaccording to the method, where a feeding-in part 1, which preferablyconsists of a more or less plane surface on which there are mounted aspindle motor, pneumatic or hydraulic cylinders or another form ofarrangement for linear displacement 2, where said arrangement, togetherwith an elongated plate-shaped part 3 which extends for the same lengthor longer than the breadth of an item 4, serves as feeder 2,3. Thefunction of the feeder 2,3 is to lay the one end of an item 4, the endof which is provided with a seam, a beaded or other form of edge 5, inthe holding arrangement 6. In a preferred embodiment, the holdingarrangement 6, a so-called stick, is configured as a profile part whichto the rear is provided with a form of geometric lock 7, preferably aflap which holds the front edge 5 of the item 4 during the whole of theprocessing of the item 4, upon conclusion of which the item 4 isreleased from the holding arrangement 6 via a release mechanism 8 whichworks in connection with the lock 7. The release mechanism can be ofelectromagnetic, pneumatic/hydraulic or mechanical configuration, but inthe preferred embodiment it is configured as one or morespring-influenced release pins or grips.

A preferred embodiment of a holding arrangement 6 is shown in FIG. 2,where the holding arrangement 6 comprises a number of channels 20, 21,22 which extend transversely to the feeding direction, with a firstchannel 20, the one channel wall or side of which constitutes thegeometric lock 7 for securing the item 4. This channel 20 is configuredfor through-flow of the active washing fluid in the washing section, sothat the secured edge 5 of the item 4 also goes through a washingprocess. A second channel 21 is arranged for the through-flow of steam,hot air or the like, in such a manner that an intermediate wall part 23,which forms a partition between a first channel 20 and a second channel21, is provided with not-shown holes or jets, so that steam, hot air orthe like can be led into the first channel 20 from the second channel 21for drying of the edge 5 of the item 4. A channel 22 can be configuredat the front with an inwardly-sloping wall part 24, so that the holdingarrangement 6 comes to appear with an inclined, downwards-sloping frontedge.

Before the feeding of the items 4 into the plant, a form of magazine canbe provided for the storage of holding arrangements 6 which, one afterthe other, are ready to receive the front edge 5 of the item 4 in thelock 7 of the holding arrangement 6.

A holding arrangement 6 of the present construction can be used in manydifferent plants for the transport of substantially flat items of arelatively flexible character, and for this reason the use of thisholding arrangement 6 is not limited to use in connection with washingand/or ironing plants.

Either manually or by means of a not further disclosed feedingarrangement, an item 4 is placed with its leading edge 5 between thefeeder 2,3 and the holding arrangement 6. When by means of the feeder2,3, the leading edge 5 of the item 4 is locked firmly in the holdingarrangement 6, the item is provided with a provisionally firm front edgewhich is able to transport the item 4 through parts of or through thewhole of the washing/ironing process. The holding arrangement 6 is fedin by the feeding-in part 1 on a transport arrangement 9, which withadvantage can be configured as a pair of parallel conveyor belts 9 witha number of carriers 10 or pins which are disposed at suitableintervals, so that the holding arrangements 6 are supported and fedforwards with a suitable distance between them, depending on the lengthof the individual items 4 in the transport direction. The distancebetween the conveyor belts 9 is greater than the breadth of the broadestitem, and less than the extent of the holding arrangements 6transversely to the direction of transport. The holding arrangement 6 isfed by the carriers 10 on the conveyor belt 9 into one of the processingsections, where the first processing section will normally be a washingsection. The holding arrangement 6 can feed the item 4 from process toprocess, and feed the item 4 through each individual process withpossible waiting positions between the individual processes. It is alsopossible for parts of the process to be skipped, merely by use ofcommonly-known internal transport, where the holding arrangement 6 withitem 4 is fed to the relevant, desired position.

A path through the processing plant can be washing-ironing,washing-drying, washing-drying-ironing, or other combinations ofprocesses, possibly followed by a folding of the item 4, but can also beeffected as parts of the above-mentioned processes.

A washing section according to FIG. 5 comprises a vessel 11 containing aliquid, preferably water to which some form of detergent or cleansingagent has been added. As shown in FIG. 3, in the vessel 11 andtransversely to the transport direction there is disposed a number ofpipes 12, preferably at least two pipes, which can be fixed or can berotated around their longitudinal axes, said pipes preferably being ofcircular cross-section, but can also be of other configurations, forexample with ellipsoidal or polygonal cross-sections. In the spacebetween these pipes 12 there are placed movable pipes 13 which can bemoved in an upwards and downwards direction, so that these movable pipes13 are in their uppermost position until the holding arrangement 6 hasjust passed under the relevant pipe 13, after which the pipe is moveddownwards to a position on a level with the fixed pipes 12. In thismanner, the item passes over the pipes 12 and under the pipes 13, sothat both the upper and under sides of the item are influenced by thefriction of the pipe surfaces. If it is desired to increase the washingeffect, one or more of the fixed pipes 12 can be driven around by adrive arrangement provided for this purpose, and the cross-section ofthe tube or tubes 14 can, for example, be rectangular or of otherpolygonal cross-section. In cases where the item 4 is very long, or inother cases where there is need for the item 4 to traverse a longerpath, the movable pipes can be disposed in a position which lies lowerthan that height at which the fixed pipes 12 are lying. In this manner,it is achieved that the holding arrangement 6 which feeds the next item4 through the process can be placed on the conveyor belt 9 with asmaller distance than otherwise up to the preceding holding arrangement6, inasmuch as two items 4 must not overlap one another during thetransport. Each washing section concludes with one or more sets ofrollers 19 which, by rotating in opposite directions, are able to pressmost of the water out of the item, whereby it is possible to have waterof different degrees of cleanliness in the individual vessels 11, wherethe cleanliness increases in the direction of transport. A furtheradvantage of having this division of sections is that the water can beprecisely dosed with the necessary additives, such as detergents,softeners or the like. Moreover, it can be sufficient to change thewater in one vessel 11 at a time, whereby the consumption of water isconsiderably reduced.

The ironing section shown in FIG. 4 is built up in more or less the sameway. Transversely to the transport direction there are disposed a numberof pipes 14, preferably at least two pipes which are preferably fixed,said pipes 14 preferably being of circular cross-section, but which canalso be of other configurations, for example of ellipsoidalcross-section. In the space between these pipes 14 there are placedmovable pipes 15 which can be moved in an upwards and downwardsdirection, so that these movable pipes 15 are in their uppermostposition until the holding arrangement 6 has just passed under therelevant pipe 15, after which the pipe is moved downwards to a positionon a level with the fixed pipe 14. In this manner, the item passes overthe pipes 14 and under the pipes 15, so that both the upper and undersides of the item are influenced by the friction of the pipe surfaces.If it is desired to increase the ironing effect in cases where the item4 is very long, or in other cases where there is need for the item 4 totraverse a longer path, the movable pipes 15 can be disposed in aposition which lies lower than that height at which the fixed pipes 14are lying. In this manner, it is achieved that the holding arrangement 6which feeds the next item 4 through the process can be placed on theconveyor belt 9 with a smaller distance than otherwise up to thepreceding holding arrangement, inasmuch as two items 4 must not overlapone another during the transport.

In order to achieve a satisfactory ironing effect, one or more of thepipes 14, 15 are heated, preferably all of the pipes 14, 15 in anironing section, by means of a heat-transferring medium, which medium ispreferably steam. The heated pipes 14, 15 are provided with an inlet 16for steam, and an outlet 17 for condensate. On the movable pipes 15there is configured a form of stub 18 to which commonly-known flexibletubular connections can be secured.

If a certain type of item 4 has need for an intermediate drying, or afinal drying instead of ironing, the holding arrangement 6 with the item4 can be transported to a drying plant where one or more items at a timecan be dried with hot air or other form of drying process.

When the individual item 4 has gone through the process determined forthe item, the item 4 is fed to a folding machine or other form of endprocess, after which the items 4 are ready for collection and furtheruse.

An expedient embodiment of the holding arrangement 6 can thus be thatthe holding arrangement 6 has a surface 24 which slopes downwards toform a point at its forwardly-facing edge. This configuration, or othersimilar configuration, can be of advantage in cases where the holdingarrangement 6 with its front edge in contact with the movable roller 13,15 initiates a short upwards movement of the roller 13, 15, inasmuch asthe holding arrangement 6 having just passed under the roller 13, 15again allows the roller 13, 15 to be brought into its working position,which is a lower position.

On the holding arrangement 6 there are provided one or more triggers 8which influence a lock 7 when the edge 5 of the item 4 shall be releasedupon conclusion of the processing. The trigger 8 can be in the form of apin, a stud or the like. The important aspect of this trigger 8 is thatit is placed in such a manner that it is not influenced unintentionally,in that the item 4 would otherwise fall out of engagement in the holdingarrangement 6 at some point in the processing plant. Therefore, thetrigger 8 is preferably placed at an outer end of the holdingarrangement 6, so that the rollers 12, 13, 14, 15 do not come intocontact with the trigger 8.

It can also be arranged that the trigger does not sit in connection withthe lock 7, but that a not-shown external pin or arm moves in andreleases the item 4 by a pressure on the lock 7 itself.

In FIG. 4 there is shown an example of the pipe connections to and froma movable ironing roller 15. The fixed roller 14 is provided with aheating medium in an ordinary manner (not-shown).

Other embodiments of the holding arrangement are seen in FIGS. 6–8 andare described briefly in the following. In order to bring the movableironing roller 15 into contact with the item 4 which is to be ironed inas short a distance as possible after the holding arrangement 6, it canbe preferred to configure the holding arrangement 6 with adownwards-sloping rear edge. Together with a differently configuredgeometric lock 7, this will result in a larger part of the item 4 beinginfluenced by the ironing roller 15. The lock 7 can be configured with ahinge part placed in the immediate proximity of the upper plane part ofthe holding arrangement 6. From here, the lock 7 slopes rearwards anddownwards.

The lock part 7 can have different configurations. For example, the lock7 can be configured as a profile which can slide in a slot 25 formed inthe holding arrangement 6 (FIG. 6). Here, the lowermost edge of the lock7 forms an angle with the remaining part of the lock 7, whereby thelowermost edge extends forwards in the transport direction for theholding arrangement 6. The lock 7 hereby brings about a geometricsecuring of an item 4 in the holding arrangement 6, in that the slotextends downwards/rearwards in the transport direction for the holdingarrangement 6. Moreover, an additional securing effect for the item 4can be achieved by placing a spring or the like in the slot 25 in theholding arrangement 6.

A second way in which the lock part 7 can be configured can be to letthe lock part 7 comprise two hinge parts, and to secure the lock part 7to the holding arrangement 6 with a first hinge part 26, said firsthinge part 26 being secured in a pivotal manner to the rearmost part ofthe upper part of the holding arrangement 6, from where the hinge partextends rearwards and downwards seen in the direction of movement of theholding arrangement 6, to a second hinge part 27 which lies up againstthe rearmost part of the lower part 28 of the holding arrangement 6.This second hinge part 27 extends as a form of flap which constitutesthe furthermost part of the lock part 7. In order to secure an item inthe holding arrangement 6, these first and second hinge parts 26, 27 caneach be of such a length that they are larger than the distance betweenthe upper side and the under side of the holding arrangement. At thesame time it is ensured that the first hinge part can not swing to aposition over the upper edge of the holding arrangement 6, for exampleby providing a limitation in the hinge itself or by letting the upperedge of the holding arrangement 6 continue rearwards in one or moreplaces seen over the extent of the holding arrangement 6, in order toform a stop for the first hinge part 26 in an upper position. Inconnection with the contact of the second hinge part 27 against therearmost part of the lower part 28 of the holding arrangement 6, it is aprecondition that this part of the holding arrangement 6 extends so farrearwards seen in the transport direction that it is possible for thesecond hinge part 27 to form contact against the holding arrangement 6.The lower part 28 of the holding arrangement can extend shorter orlonger rearwards in the transport direction of the holding arrangement6, in that its primary function is to secure the item 4 together withthe lock part 7.

The lock part 7 can also be configured as a profile in one piece, whichat its one end is pivotally connected to an axis of rotation 29 in theholding arrangement 6, said axis of rotation 29 preferably being placedin the centre area of the holding arrangement 6, so that by means ofresistance the lock part 7 secures an item 4 at the front edge 5 of theitem. The resistance can, for example, be effected by a spring element30 or the like, where said spring element 30 can be a torsion spring orother form of spring. The function of the spring element 30 is to exerta pressure on the lock part 7, so that the lock part 7 is held againstthe item 4 and herewith against the lower part 28 of the holdingarrangement 6.

It is common to all of these embodiments of the lock part 7 that theycan all be released by means of a trigger mechanism 8, which can beinfluenced by a release element from the plant as described earlier.

The plant according to the invention is not limited to a configurationwith a single lane for transport of the items through the plant. Forexample, the plant can be built up so that it is possible to feed itemson several conveyors which run independently, and which do not need tobe filled with items in a synchronous manner.

An example of a construction can be to arrange a number of transportlanes at the side of one another. An overlap can be possible between theindividual transport lanes, in such a manner that two or more holdingarrangements which are fed in lanes lying side by side utilise a commonconveyor belt. This requires that the conveyor belts which are not lyingon an outer side are broad enough to be able to receive and transporttwo holding arrangements placed side by side, and that all conveyorbelts are driven at approximately the same speed of transport.

Another example of how a plant can be built up with a number oftransport lanes side by side can be a construction with a number oftransport lanes each with their own set or pair of conveyor belts.Furthermore, this provides the possibility of feeding items in severallanes, where each individual lane can be fed at a speed which does notneed to correspond to a speed determined by one of the remaining lanes.

An equal distribution in equally broad lanes can be envisaged, but alsosolutions where the lanes have different breadths can be preferred. Suchlanes can be configured with different breadths between the conveyorbelts, which thus requires holding arrangements with an extenttransversely to the transport direction which corresponds to thatbreadth of transport which is suitable for the individual transportlanes.

1. A method for processing substantially flat textile items comprising:providing a processing plant having processing sections for at leastwashing and/or ironing said substantially flat textile items, saidprocessing plant containing both fixed and movable parts in the form oftransverse elements (12, 13, 14, 15), at least one of said movableelements being movable in a substantially upwards and downwards movementand being located in a washing and/or ironing processing section,engaging the substantially flat textile items at a feed into theprocessing plant of the substantially flat textile items using a holdingarrangement for securing and stretching-out the items (4), said holdingarrangement (6) having a geometric lock arrangement (7) for securing anitem (4), so that the holding arrangement (6) forms a temporary fixedfront edge extending wholly or partly along a front side (5) of the item(4) relative to a transport direction, the holding arrangement (6)having a number of channels (20,21,22) which extend transversely to thetransport direction, one or more channels (20,21) supplying an activewashing liquid and/or a drying medium to the fixed front edge (5) of theitem (4), engaging the holding arrangement (6) using a transportarrangement (9) having carriers (10), for moving the held substantiallyflat textile items through the processing plant, individually andautomatically feeding the held substantially flat textile items to theprocessing plant, transporting successively and continuously said heldsubstantially flat textile items through said processing plant in aforwardly progressing transport direction, and, contacting the heldsubstantially flat textile items with said fixed and movable partslocated in the washing and/or ironing processing section as the heldsubstantially flat textile items are transported therethrough.
 2. Themethod according to claim 1, further comprising providing air or steamto the fixed front edge (5) of the item (4) through openings in theholding arrangement.
 3. The method according to claim 1 wherein the lockarrangement has a locking part (7), and further comprising moving thelocking part between a locking position and an open position, thelocking part moving within an elongated slot (25).
 4. The methodaccording to claim 3, wherein the locking arrangement (7) has a firsthinge part (26), from which the locking part (7) extends downward andrearwards, relative to a direction of movement of the holdingarrangement (6) towards a second hinge part (27), from which a flap partlies up against a rearmost part of a lowermost part of the holdingarrangement (6), for scuring the item (4) at the front edge (5).
 5. Themethod according to claim 3, or 4 wherein the locking part (7) ispivotally secured at one end to an axis of rotation (29) in the holdingarrangement (6), and further comprising providing a spring element forbiasing the locking part so that the influence from the spring element(30) on the locking part (7) secures the item (4) at the front edge (5).6. The method according to claim 1 further comprising completely orpartially filling an area around the transverse elements (12, 13) withliquid, transporting the items (4) through the area and exposing theitems to a friction from surfaces of the transverse elements (12, 13).7. The method according to claim 1 further comprising flowing a heatingmedium through at least one of the transverse elements (14, 15).
 8. Themethod according to claim 1 further comprising flowing steam through atleast one of the transverse elements (14, 15).
 9. A processing plant forwashing and/or ironing substantially flat textile items which are fedautomatically and individually by a feeding apparatus to the processingplant and transported successively and continuously through theprocessing plant, said processing plant comprising both fixed andmovable processing parts, said processing parts consisting of a numberof tubular elements (12, 13, 14, 15) disposed in a substantiallyhorizontal manner and transversely to a processing direction, themovable elements (13, 15) being placed between fixed elements (12, 14)and being displaceable in a substantially upwards and downwardsdirection, and a holding arrangement (6) for holding and transportingstretched-out items (4) through the processing plant, said holdingarrangement (6) having a geometric lock arrangement (7) for securing anitem (4), so that the holding arrangement (6) forms a temporary fixedfront edge extending wholly or partly along a front side (5) of the item(4) relative to a transport direction, the holding arrangement (6)having a number of channels (20, 21, 22) which extend transversely tothe transport direction, one or more channels (20,21) supplying anactive washing liquid and/or a drying medium to the fixed front edge (5)of the item (4).
 10. The processing plant according to claim 9, whereinair or steam are supplied to the fixed front edge (5) of the item (4)through openings in the holding arrangement.
 11. The processing plantaccording to claim 9 or 10 wherein the lock arrangement has a lockingpart (7) which moves between a locking position and an open position,the locking part moving within an elongated slot (25).
 12. Theprocessing plant according to claim 11, wherein the locking arrangement(7) has a first hinge part (26), from which the locking part (7) extendsdownward and rearwards, relative to a direction of movement of theholding arrangement (6) towards a second hinge part (27), from which aflap part lies up against a rearmost part of a lowermost part of theholding arrangement (6), for securing the item (4) at the front edge(5).
 13. The processing plant according to claim 11, wherein the lockingpart (7) is pivotally secured at one end to an axis of rotation (29) inthe holding arrangement (6), a spring element provided for biasing thelocking part so that the influence from the spring element (30) on thelocking part (7) secures the item (4) at the front edge (5).
 14. Theprocessing plant according to claim 9 wherein a heating medium flowsthrough at least one of the tubular elements (14, 15).
 15. Theprocessing plant according to claim 9 wherein steam flows through atleast one of the tubular elements (14, 15).
 16. The processing plantaccording to claim 9 wherein one or more of the tubular elements (12,13, 14, 15) are rotated around an axis which lies transversely inrelation to the transport direction such that a relative speed betweenthe item (4) and one or more of the tubular elements (12, 13, 14, 15) ischanging.
 17. A processing plant for washing and/or ironingsubstantially flat textile items which are fed automatically andindividually by a feeding apparatus to the processing plant andtransported successively and continuously through the processing plant,said processing plant comprising both fixed and movable processingparts, said processing parts consisting of a number of tubular elements(12, 13, 14, 15) disposed in a substantially horizontal manner andtransversely to a processing direction, the movable elements (13, 15)being placed between fixed elements (12, 14) and being displaceable in asubstantially upwards and downwards direction, and a holding arrangement(6) for holding and transporting stretched-out items (4) through theprocessing plant, said holding arrangement (6) having a geometric lockarrangement (7) for securing an item (4), so that the holdingarrangement (6) forms a temporary fixed front edge extending wholly orpartly along a front side (5) of the item (4) relative to a transportdirection, the holding arrangement (6) having a number of channels(20,21,22) which extend transversely to the transport direction, an areaaround the tubular elements (12, 13) being completely or partly filledwith liquid, the items (4) transported through the area being exposed toa friction from surfaces of the tubular elements (12, 13).
 18. Theprocessing plant according to claim 17 wherein a heating medium flowsthrough at least one of the tubular elements (14, 15).
 19. Theprocessing plant according to claim 17 wherein steam flows through atleast one of the tubular elements (14, 15).
 20. The processing plantaccording to claim 17 wherein one or more of the tubular elements (12,13, 14, 15) are rotated around an axis which lies transversely inrelation to the transport direction such that a relative speed betweenthe item (4) and one or more of the tubular elements (12, 13, 14, 15) ischanging.